and Allen Weiss for their helpful input. We are especially grateful for the valuable feedback provided by Daniel Brass, Linda Johanson, and three anonymous reviewers. This research was funded by the Stanford Integrated Manufacturing Association.If we cannot now end our differences, at least we can help make the world safe for diversity. -John F. KennedyIn this paper we present an integrative model of the relationships among diversity, conflict, and performance, and we test that model with a sample of 45 teams. Findings show that diversity shapes conflict and that conflict, in turn, shapes performance, but these linkages have subtleties. Functional background diversity drives task conflict, but multiple types of diversity drive emotional conflict. Race and tenure diversity are positively associated with emotional conflict, while age diversity is negatively associated with such conflict. Task routineness and group longevity moderate these relationships. Results further show that task conflict has more favorable effects on cognitive task performance than does emotional conflict. Overall, these patterns suggest a complex link between work group diversity and work group functioning.'In the past decade, demographic diversity has become one of the foremost topics of interest to managers and management scholars. The term demographic diversity refers to the degree to which a unit (e.g., a work group or organization) is heterogeneous with respect to demographic attributes. Attributes classified as demographic generally include "immutable characteristics such as age, gender, and ethnicity; attributes that describe individuals' relationships with organizations, such as organizational tenure or functional area; and attributes that identify individuals' positions within society, such as marital status" (Lawrence, 1997: 1 1). The heightened concern with demographic diversity (hereafter referred to simply as diversity) stems not only from the growing presence of women and minorities in the work force (Buhler, 1997) but also from modern organizational strategies that require more interaction among employees of different functional backgrounds (e.g., Dean and Snell, 1991). One of the most significant bodies of research to arise from this trend is a stream of field studies linking group composition to cognitive task performance-i.e., performance on tasks that involve generating plans or creative ideas, solving problems, or making decisions. The impact of diversity on cognitive task performance has been examined in studies of top management teams (e.g.

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Two studies were conducted to investigate the indigenous concept of guanxi and its applications in the Chinese context. Guanxi refers to the existence of direct particularistic ties between an individual and others. We relate the concept to the idea of relational demography, which refers to similarities or differences between an individual and others on such factors as age, gender, race, religion, education, and occupation. The two studies focused on the importance of guanxi and relational demography in Chinese employment settings. In study 1, their importance was examined in a sample of 560 vertical dyads (i.e., between supervisor and subordinate) in Taiwan. In study 2, the effects were analyzed in a sample of 205 horizontal dyads, specifically between business executives and their important business connections (e.g., key customers, suppliers, bankers, government officials) in mainland China. Results support the importance of both guanxi and relational demography for subordinate trust in the supervisor, but only guanxi is found to be (extremely) important for business executives' trust in their connections. Implications for future cross-cultural research on the effect of common ties are discussed.

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In this study, the authors developed a dual-concern (i.e., maintenance and performance) model of human resources (HR) management. The authors identified commonly examined HR practices that apply to the middle manager level and classified them into the maintenance- and performance-oriented HR subsystems. The authors found support for the 2-factor model on the basis of responses from 2,148 managers from 463 firms operating in China. Regression results indicate that the performance-oriented HR subsystems had a positive relationship with firm performance and that the relationship was mediated by middle managers' affective commitment to the firm. The maintenance-oriented HR subsystems had a positive relationship with middle managers' continuance commitment but not with their affective commitment and firm performance. This study contributes to the understanding of how HR practices relate to firm performance and offers an improved test of the argument that valuable and firm-specific HR provide a source of competitive advantage. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2009 APA, all rights reserved).

Taking a procedural justice perspective, we examined the effect of guanxi practices in human resources management (i.e., making human resources management decisions on the basis of personal relationships) on employees' trust in management in Chinese organizations. Two studies were conducted. In the first, a survey study, we found a negative effect of guanxi practices on trust in management, which was mediated by perceived procedural justice. In the second, an experimental study, we found that the negative effect of guanxi practices varied as a function of guanxi bases: favoring a nephew or a hometown fellow lowered trust, but favoring a college schoolmate or a close friend did not. Theoretical and practical implications are discussed.

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